Fabricating Fe Nanoparticles Embedded in Zeolite Y Microcrystals as Active Catalysts for Fischer–Tropsch Synthesis
Cederick Cyril Amoo, Mingquan Li, Aqsa Noreen, Yajie Fu, Elton Maturura, Ce Du, Ruiqin Yang, Xinhua Gao, Chuang Xing, Noritatsu Tsubaki
Abstract
Keen interest is taken in zeolite-encapsulated metal nanoparticles (NPs) owing to their excellent performance and ultrastability in heterogeneous catalysis. Herein, we propose a simple and efficient method to contain Fe NPs within zeolite Y microcrystals. First, a low-pressure technique was developed to successfully synthesize the zeolite Y microcrystals. The technique was then invoked, using Fe NPs fixed in nanosized C spheres as a precursor, to prepare zeolite Y-embedded Fe composite catalysts. The C spheres served as a template that restricted Fe NP growth within zeolite Y. Above all, the successful confinement of small Fe NPs within the microcrystals of zeolite Y enhanced the catalyst activity with 36.2% selectivity for light olefins (C2–C4=) at a CO conversion of 91.2% during evaluation in Fischer–Tropsch synthesis. The techniques presented in this work open up a new avenue worth exploiting for the synthesis of nano/microcrystalline materials and highly active metal–zeolite composites in heterogeneous catalysis.